The EU’s Reluctance to Set Binding Targets for Soil Health Laws
Introduction
The European Union (EU) has recently faced criticism for its increased reluctance to follow through on environmental laws, specifically those concerning soil erosion and pollution. Businesses, including Nestle and Unilever, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) such as WWF, have called for binding targets and ambitious legislation to prioritize soil health. However, a draft of the soil health law reveals that no binding targets will be set. Instead, the European Commission plans to establish a framework for member states to assess poor soils regularly based on indicators such as erosion levels, carbon content, and harmful chemical presence.
This article explores the implications of the EU’s decision to forgo binding targets for soil health laws. It also discusses the need for precise targets and the potential consequences of not addressing soil health effectively. Furthermore, it delves into the economic and environmental implications of unhealthy soils, providing insights and perspectives that shed light on this pressing issue.
The Importance of Soil Health
1. Soil health and ecological goals: Businesses and NGOs argue that soil health is crucial for the EU to achieve its ecological goals. Healthy soils support sustainable agriculture, biodiversity, and carbon sequestration, leading to improved food security and reduced carbon emissions.
2. Environmental risks associated with unhealthy soils: Unhealthy soils increase the risk of droughts, fires, and food insecurity. The European Environment Agency estimates that 2.8 million sites in the EU have contaminated soil, posing significant environmental risks.
3. Degradation of arable land: The document highlights that the amount of available arable land per capita in the EU has halved over the past 50 years due to soil degradation. This degradation contributes to the loss of agricultural productivity and poses challenges for sustaining food production.
EU’s Reluctance to Set Binding Targets
1. Draft proposal overview: The draft proposal of the soil health law reveals the EU’s reluctance to set binding targets. Instead, the European Commission plans to establish a framework for member states to identify areas with poor soils and regularly assess their status based on specific indicators.
2. Criticism of the draft proposal: Businesses, NGOs, and environmental experts have criticized the draft proposal for its lack of binding targets and unclear definitions of healthy soils. The absence of precise targets undermines efforts to restore damaged ecosystems and address soil contamination effectively.
3. Opposition from member states: In the past, attempts by Brussels to pass legislation on soil contamination faced strong opposition from member states, including Germany and France. Some member states argue that the EU is overreaching its powers and exaggerating the role of governance in soils.
Economic and Environmental Implications
1. High cost of tackling contaminated soils: The draft proposal acknowledges the high cost of identifying and investigating polluted sites, which could amount to nearly €2 billion. However, the economic benefits of implementing soil restoration policies are expected to double, helping to offset some of the costs.
2. Potential economic losses: Unhealthy soils pose economic risks by reducing agricultural productivity and increasing the vulnerability of the agri-food sector to climate change impacts. Failure to address soil health could result in economic losses for farmers and related industries.
3. Importance of good soil health in reducing carbon emissions: Soil health plays a crucial role in reducing carbon emissions and mitigating climate change. Well-maintained soils have higher carbon sequestration capacities, helping to offset greenhouse gas emissions from other sectors.
The Way Forward
1. Need for binding and ambitious measures: Environmental experts and NGOs stress the necessity of establishing binding and ambitious measures for soil health. Without clear targets, it will be challenging to monitor and assess progress effectively, hindering the restoration of damaged ecosystems.
2. Integration of soil monitoring requirements: The draft proposal should include basic monitoring requirements to ensure consistent and comprehensive soil sampling across member states. Monitoring is essential for identifying areas with poor soils and implementing targeted restoration strategies.
3. Key role of EU countries: The successful implementation of soil restoration measures relies on ambitious action from EU countries. Member states must prioritize soil health, establish precise targets, and allocate the necessary resources to address the challenge effectively.
Summary
The EU’s reluctance to set binding targets for soil health laws has raised concerns among businesses, NGOs, and environmental experts. The draft proposal for the soil health law reveals a lack of precise targets and clear definitions of healthy soils. This reluctance jeopardizes the EU’s ecological goals and increases the risks associated with unhealthy soils, such as droughts, fires, and food insecurity.
Addressing soil health is crucial for sustainable agriculture, biodiversity, and carbon sequestration. Unhealthy soils also contribute to the degradation of arable land and pose economic risks for the agri-food sector. The high costs of tackling contaminated soils must be weighed against the economic benefits and long-term environmental gains.
The way forward involves establishing binding and ambitious measures for soil health and ensuring the integration of monitoring requirements. EU countries play a vital role in implementing targeted restoration strategies and allocating resources to address soil health effectively.
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Brussels ignored calls from businesses and constituencies to set binding targets to prevent soil erosion and pollution, a latest indication of the EU’s increased reluctance to follow through on environmental laws that form part of its green agenda .
Companies including Nestle and Unilever, along with NGOs such as WWF, had called in March for ambitious legislation and specific targets for soil health, arguing it was crucial for the bloc to meet its ecological goals.
But a draft of the so-called soil health law, seen by the Financial Times, shows no binding targets will be set.
Instead the European Commission will establish a framework for member states to identify areas with poor soils and to regularly assess their status based on a list of indicators such as the level of erosion, carbon and the presence of harmful chemicals.
Paul Polman, the former chief executive of Unilever who now campaigns on environmental issues, described the rules as “a key piece of legislation” but noted that healthy soils “were not well defined”. He hoped that “more precise targets” would be developed, although, he added, they would be “very specific to location and culture.”
The legislation is the first EU-wide effort to restore soils, with the commission estimating that around 60-70% of overall land is unhealthy, which increases the risk of droughts, fires and food insecurity. The European Environment Agency has estimated that 2.8 million sites in the EU have contaminated soil.
The amount of available arable land per capita in the EU has halved over the past 50 years, the document says, partly as a result of its degradation.
The proposal will be presented next week as part of a wider set of measures targeting the agri-food sector and could be subject to changes before the final announcement.
Despite setting ambitious climate targets in 2021, the EU has struggled to do the same for biodiversity and environmental legislation.
Some member states included Italy and Poland and right-wing lawmakers have argued that the bloc should water down some of its green rules to protect industries from pressures stemming from war in Ukraine, inflation and global competition from rivals like China.
The EU’s flagship law to restore damaged ecosystems was rejected by three European Parliament committees following a heated campaign led by the conservative European People’s Party, the largest group in the parliament, who say the law is poorly drafted and it will cause farmers to abandon business.
In the draft proposal, the commission said the annual cost of tackling contaminated soils was “highly uncertain” and could be nearly €2 billion just to identify and investigate polluted sites.
The overall cost of implementing soil restoration policies would be between €28 and €38 billion a year, the paper said, but the economic benefits were expected to double.
The commission declined to comment on the draft.
For a long time, the EU had laws regulating air and water quality, but it never regulated soil.
An effort by Brussels to pass legislation to prevent soil contamination in 2010 failed due to strong opposition from member states, including Germany and France. Opposing countries then said the commission was exaggerating its powers by trying to govern the soils.
Lillian Busse, vice president of the German Environment Agency, said she had hoped for “binding and more ambitious measures” than those currently being drafted and that the proposal lacked basic monitoring requirements.
In the current proposal, Member States will be left to decide when and how to carry out soil sampling.
Stientje van Veldhoven, vice president of the NGO World Resources Institute, said that “good soil health is essential to reduce carbon emissions” and that “ambitious implementation” of the measures by EU countries would be “key “.
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